1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a print-order receiving apparatus capable of receiving a customer""s order for photographic prints through a recording medium electronically recording image data therein.
2. Description of the Related Art
The print-order receiving apparatus of the above-noted type includes receiving means in the form of a slot (i.e. an elongated aperture) or a tray, to which the recording medium such as a so-called memory card available under the commercial name of xe2x80x9cSmart Media(trademark)xe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cCompact Flash(trademark)xe2x80x9d card or MO, CD-R, etc. can be inserted or mounted. The apparatus further includes a reading driver unit for reading the image date from the recording medium attached to this receiving means. Then, the customer can place an order for an output service such as for photographic printing or CD printing based on the image data such as photographic images recorded in such recording medium. The ordered photographic printing or CD printing will be performed by means of e.g. a xe2x80x9cminilab systemxe2x80x9d connected to the print-order receiving apparatus.
Such print-order receiving apparatus as above is generally designed for use with a small-sized general-purpose computer, typically, a personal computer. Therefore, the reading driver unit incorporated in this print-order receiving apparatus too is provided in the form of a rectangular box-like unit to be fitted within a predetermined attachment space of standardized dimensions, called xe2x80x9c3.5 inch bayxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9c5 inch bayxe2x80x9d generally employed for mounting such unit in the box-like frame of the computer.
Therefore, if this reading driver unit of the print-order receiving apparatus is mounted in a horizontal posture just like other reading driver unit for the computer, the slot for inserting the recording medium will extend narrowly and horizontally in the end face of the box-like frame of the computer, with its aperture-delimiting edges extending along the perpendicular direction.
Then, when the print-order receiving apparatus is set in a most common situation such as a working table or a reception counter of a service shop, the customer who generally assumes the most comfortable position of standing on the nearby floor surface and faces the apparatus from this position will find the slot far blow his/her eye level. Moreover, as the slot is a narrow horizontal elongated aperture, the upper and lower sides of the rectangular aperture forming the slot will be substantially in vertical alignment with each other, hindering accurate recognition by the customer of the inserting position of the recording medium. If the customer is to smoothly insert medium without the medium""s hitting against e.g. other, i.e. non-slotted portion of the apparatus, this will require a physical burden for the customer such as crouching to lower his/her eye level to the vicinity of the slot.
The present invention has been made to overcome the above-described drawback of the conventional print-order receiving apparatus. A primary object of the invention is to provide an improved print-order receiving apparatus which allows a user or a customer to attach the recording medium in a more comfortable manner.
For accomplishing the above-noted object, according to the present invention, there is provided a print-order receiving apparatus capable of receiving a customer""s order for photographic prints through a recording medium electronically recording image data therein, the apparatus comprising:
a box-like apparatus body;
a slot formed in the apparatus body for attaching the recording medium;
a reading driver unit for reading the image date from the recording medium as attached in the slot;
wherein said slot defines an aperture plane with its peripheral edges, the aperture plane being upwardly inclined.
With the above feature, the print-order receiving apparatus of the invention provides a readily visible condition for the user with the upper and lower edges of the aperture of the slot being sufficiently apart from each other from the eye level of the user who assumes the most comfortable posture of standing on the nearby floor surface without e.g. crouching.
Preferably, the reading driver unit has a substantially rectangular unit defining the slot in one end face thereof, the unit being upwardly inclined.
That is, as mentioned hereinbefore, such reading driver unit mountable within the print-order receiving apparatus is typically provided with a box-like frame in the form of flat and substantially rectangular unit. Then, when the reading driver unit having such shape is mounted with an inclined posture, there is realized the upwardly inclined posture of the aperture plane delimited by the peripheral edges of the slot for attachment of the recording medium.
Accordingly, the print-order receiving apparatus allowing comfortable and smooth attachment of the recording medium to the slot can be realized with minimized costs by utilizing the reading driver unit of the standardized shape without substantial modification thereof.
Still preferably, the reading driver unit disposed with the inclined posture forms, at an upper portion thereof, a trapezoidal space as viewed sideways; and the print-order receiving apparatus further comprises a holder portion for holding a recording paper roll and a printer unit for printing order information on the recording paper unrolled from the holder portion, said holder portion and said printer unit being accommodated within said trapezoidal space with said holder portion being located deeper into the apparatus body than said printer unit and with said printer unit being confined within an outer contour of said holder unit as viewed from the front.
Namely, in the case of a print-order receiving apparatus of the type which is installed at a service shop and requires a customer""s self reading/inputting operation of the image data from the recording medium which he/she has brought to the shop, it is essential for the apparatus to be equipped with a printer unit for printing and issuing a receipt recording the information used for identifying or confirming the image data read by the apparatus or the order placed on the apparatus. In such case, in order to minimize the space to be occupied at the shop for its installment, it is desired to provide a small-sized printer unit within the print-order receiving apparatus as an integral unit thereof, rather than to provide the device as a separate unit. Such printer device typically includes a printer unit for providing the printing function and a holder portion for holding a recording paper roll for feeding the recording paper to the printer unit. And, with this type of printer device consisting mainly of the printer unit and the holder portion, the printer unit is formed extremely compact and its vertical thickness in particular is much smaller than the vertical width of the holder portion. Then, if the printer unit and the holder portion are disposed side by side in the depth direction of the apparatus body, the holder portion extend significantly beyond the outer contour of the printer unit as seen in the front view. Therefore, if these printer unit and holder portion having such dimensional relationship are disposed in the conventional manner as above, there will be formed a large dead space above or below the printer unit, hence being not desirable for forming the entire apparatus compact.
Then, according to the print-order receiving apparatus of the present invention, the trapezoidal (in side view) space formed upwardly of the reading driver unit disposed with the inclined posture is effectively utilized for disposing the printer unit having the relatively low profile on the forward side within this trapezoidal space and the holder portion having the high profile on the deeper side within this space. With this arrangement, the irregular space inevitably formed by disposing the reading driver unit with the inclined posture inside the apparatus body of the print-order receiving apparatus may be efficiently utilized for forming the entire print-order receiving apparatus compact.
Preferably, a driving circuit unit for the printer unit is disposed within a space between the holder portion and the reading driver unit.
That is to say, the driving circuit unit for controlling the operation of the printer unit should advantageously be disposed in the vicinity of the printer unit in view of e.g. its noise resistance. Then, according to the print-order receiving apparatus of the present invention, it is proposed to determine the angle of the disposing inclination of the reading driver unit such that a space may be formed between the holder portion and the reading driver unit for allowing accommodation of the driving circuit unit therein. If the driving circuit unit is accommodated within the space between the holder portion and the reading driver unit in this manner, it becomes possible to form the print-order receiving apparatus even more compact. At the same time, as the driving circuit unit can achieve its original performance of e.g. high noise resistance, the print-order receiving apparatus will be more reliable and useful.
Still preferably, the print-order receiving apparatus further comprises a retractable tray capable of mounting an auxiliary recording medium which is different in kind from the recording medium to be inserted into the slot and an auxiliary reading driver unit for reading image data of the auxiliary recording medium mounted on the retractable tray, the tray being disposed laterally of the reading driver unit so as to be retractable and extendible in a substantially horizontal direction.
That is, the apparatus having the above feature is adapted for a tray type reading driver unit for mounting a recording medium (such as a CD-ROM or CD-R) on its tray. In the case of this type of unit wherein the recording medium is set on a tray, unlike the afore-mentioned type of the reading driver unit wherein the recording medium is inserted into a slot, it will be more convenient for the user if the tray is extended and retracted in the horizontal direction rather than with an inclination.
Then, according to the print-order receiving apparatus of the invention having the above-described feature, the tray type auxiliary reading driver unit is disposed so as to allow its tray to be extended and retracted in the substantially horizontal direction so as to assure the user""s greater convenience. At the same time, by effectively utilizing the space formed sideways the inclined reading driver apparatus, the space inside the apparatus body of the print-order receiving apparatus is utilized even more efficiently.
Still preferably, the reading driver unit comprises a plurality of reading driver subunits which are vertically superposed one on another, each subunit having a smaller height than said auxiliary reading driver unit.
That is, the slot-type reading driver unit generally has a lower profile as well as a shorter length in the depth direction than the tray-type auxiliary reading driver unit. Therefore, even if a plurality of slot type units are stacked, this will not provide any significant height-wise imbalance relative to the tray-type auxiliary reading driver unit. Hence, it is possible to increase the number of the tray-type reading driver units without any trouble.
Preferably, the recording medium to be inserted into the slot comprises a memory card.
The memory card is manufactured generally by enclosing a semiconductor memory in a thick package, requiring proper care and protection against possible electrostatic noise or field in the vicinity of the user as well as a physical shock. Moreover, as the memory card is small, the slot into which the card is inserted is correspondingly narrow.
Then, with the above-described readily visible arrangement of the aperture formed by the peripheral edges of the slot for receiving such memory card, it becomes possible to relieve the user""s anxiety when handling such delicate recording medium as the memory card described above.
Still preferably, a front face portion of the apparatus body is a panel inclined upwardly and said slot is formed in this panel.
As described hereinbefore, for disposing the reading driver unit relative to the printer unit, the shorter the depth of the reading driver unit, the better.
Then, by disposing the panel of the driver unit defining the slot with the inclination and disposing the printer unit upwardly of the reading driver unit, because of the relative positional relationship relative to the printer unit, the reading driver unit extends outwardly, thereby to realize a condition similar to a condition realized by shortening the depth dimension of the reading driver unit. Consequently, the space inside the box-like apparatus body of the print-order receiving apparatus may be utilized even more efficiently.
Preferably, the print-order receiving apparatus further comprises a monitor capable of displaying the image information read from the recording medium, the monitor having a display screen disposed with an upward inclination on a top face of the apparatus body.
With the above feature, the customer who is to place an order for printing can confirm the contents of the image and order inputted from the recording medium to the print-order receiving apparatus and confirm also the progress of the dialog-type operation until completion of the printing order by the print-order receiving apparatus. And, according to the present invention, it is proposed to provide such monitor integrally with the apparatus in a compact manner. At the same time, for assuring greater convenience and comfort for the user, the display screen is provided on the top face of the apparatus body with an upward inclination for allowing the user to view it in the standard and most comfortable posture without crouching.